eli@cvl.UUCP (Eli Liang) (08/27/85)
Anyone ever spelunked in Mexico before? Are the Golandrinas as gnarly as
they say? Planning a trip for Christmas break, so I'd like to talk to anyone
whose done it before.
-eli
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Eli Liang ---
University of Maryland Computer Vision Lab, (301) 454-4526
ARPA: liang@cvl, liang@lemuria, eli@mit-mc, eli@mit-prep
CSNET: liang@cvl UUCP: {seismo,allegra,brl-bmd}!umcp-cs!cvl!liangputnam@gatech.CSNET (William O. Putnam) (08/30/85)
In article <779@cvl.UUCP> eli@cvl.UUCP (Eli Liang) writes: >Anyone ever spelunked in Mexico before? Are the Golandrinas as gnarly as >they say? Planning a trip for Christmas break, so I'd like to talk to anyone >whose done it before. Well, I'm no expert on Mexican caving, but I have been caving down there a couple of times. The first time was in December 1982. I went down with a group of fellow GaTech sutdents over Christmas break. We did Sotano de las Golondrinas, Hoya de las Guaguas, and several minor pits (170 to 400 feet). It was a fabulous experience! The second time was in Dec. 1984. I went down with a group of friends from Atlanta and Chattanooga for about a month. We did El Sotano, Guauas, Golondrinas, S. de Cepilla, and Rio Choy. We also did a bunch of touristing, including Christmas in Mexico City. It was even more fun than the first trip. The caves are (for the most part) easy to find. I have a copy of a useful book called "Caves of the Inter-American Highway" published by the Association for Mexican Cave Studies. It is probably out of print now, but it has a thorough description of many of the major caves and pits in northern Mexico. You can find out more from the NSS bookstore. The approach hikes are another story! Golondrinas is not bad - you can now drive to the town of Tamapas, about 6km from the pit. The hike follows a flagstone paved path most of the way. The people are friendly and helpful with directions, etc. If you are lazy, you can do what we did the first time and hire mules or burros to carry some (big rope) or all (luxury!) of your gear. The cost is HIGHLY negotiable, but usually reasonble if you dicker well. It cost us about $15 US to have all the gear for a 7 person expedition ferried from the van to the cave and back. Climate is semi-rain-forest. Damp, temps from 80s to 40s in December. Mostly dry that time of year. Allow a couple of hours for the hike. Try to arrive at dusk. You'll see hundreds of thousands of swallows (golondrinas in spanish) circling and diving into the pit. Hundreds of bright green parrots (guaguas) also live in the cave. It is a sight to rival the bat flights at Carlsbad! The hike to El Sotano is grim. You descend several thousand feet to a river before climbing over twice as far up the mountain on the other side to get to the pit. Climate is high desert - 90+ degrees in the daytime, 40s at night. Allow all day for the hike - you may get there sooner, but you won't feel like doing anything for a while. Altitude can be a problem for some folks - you are around 8000 feet above sea level. The pit is awesome due to its size; the view is tremendous. Still, it isn't nearly as nice a pit as Golondrinas - it just happens to be a little deeper. Don't miss Sotano de Cepilla and Hoya de las Guaguas if you go to Golandrinas! Cepilla is a 15 minute walk from the square at Tamapas. The entrance is in a pasture outside of town and drops 430 feet free to a huge, heavily decorated chamber. Guaguas is simply the most awesome pit I have ever seen. It is off the road near Tampaxal on the way to Tamapas. A 30 minute hike through the jungle gets you to the stadium sized entrance. The low side is a free fall drop of about 450 feet. The high side is about 670 feet. If you can, rig both sides and do a crossover. There is a mini-jungle at the bottom due to the spacious entrance. There is also another 400 foot drop at the bottom, but it is against a guano covered wall and is not worth doing. There are even more parrots (guaguas) here than at Golondrinas! Well, I've already gone on too long for an article on the net... Last comments: You don't need to speak Spanish but it helps if you need directions. Haggle over the price of everything except resturant meals - it's expected. Be prepared to pay a bribe of around 3 or 4 dollars at the border crossing. It is normal procedure even if you are clean. It can save you two hours of packing and unpacking while they examine your vehicle. Don't trust the water anywhere. The local beers are delicious (except Tecate, which is like Schlitz). The local sodapops are much better than the imported American Coke & Pepsi, and they cost less. All Mexican made beverages (beer & sodas) are made to be drunk at room temp or slightly chilled. Don't worry if refrigeration is not available - but DON'T drink the American beverages warm - they are awful! Don't trust the ice! Buena suerte, amigo! -- Bill Putnam School of Information & Computer Science, Georgia Tech, Atlanta GA 30332 CSNet: Putnam @ GATech ARPA: Putnam.GATech @ CSNet-Relay uucp: ...!{akgua,allegra,rlgvax,sb1,unmvax,ulysses,ut-sally}!gatech!putnam